America's Cup- Ainslie expected to announce top Fi designer signing
by Richard Gladwell, Sail-World.com/nz on 10 Jun 2014
L to R: BAR team members Paul Goodison, Sir Ben Ainslie and Matt Cornwell stand in front of the J.P. Morgan BAR AC45 at the London Boat Show 2014, ExCeL, London. onEdition
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Sir Ben Ainslie is expected to announce the assistance of Adrian Newey, the greatest Formula One designer of his generation, to help him win the 35th America's Cup for Great Britain.
English website Sportsmail reports that Newey is expected to have a hand in designing the new AC62 for as part of a new deal with Red Bull Technology which will see him continue to be involved in F1 but freed for other projects including the America's Cup.
Newey's interest in he America's cup has been signalled for some time but is expected to be confirmed at the launch of Ainslie's America's Cup campaign in a function to be attended by the Royal family, at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich
The Sportsmail reports that Ainslie, 37, has managed to secure funding worth about $100million to take on the holders, Oracle Team USA.
Sir Charles Dunstone, the Carphone Warehouse founder and Sir Keith Mills, the entrepreneur who helped bring the 2012 Olympics to London, are among the investors.
Other UK sources believe that Ainslie has only secured part of that budget and is still very much in the hunt for additional sponsorship money. However Ainslie does have more than sufficient funding to get the America's Cup project underway, and is believed to have attracted some other top talent from existing America's Cup teams.
One of his backer's Sir Keith Mills is yet to give his blessing to the new Protocol, having pulled out of the 34th America's Cup when it was announced that it was to be sailed in multihulls. At the time the British had the 2012 Olympic Games, in London, but a key factor was the technology jump to multihulls, which Sir Keith believed was to big a gap for the then Team Origin, which had IACC yachts and had been competing in the Louis Vuitton Trophy, as well as commissioning new tenders and acquiring other inventory.
Team Origin's withdrawal was Oracle Team USA's gain, with CEO Grant Simmer being snapped up by Oracle team USA in a similar role, around the time of their capsize in in October 2012. Ben Ainslie also joined the team ostensibly as skipper of the team's second AC72, but was their trump card in a mid-series tactician switch, which turned around Oracle Team USA's fortunes and won the 34th America's Cup.
He will be impossible for Oracle Team USA, to replace, lowering the odds of a three-peat for the Defenders .
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